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April 5, 2013

KFC reduces Rainforest Destruction

Rainforests are worth a lot more than greasy napkins and chicken buckets. And finally KFC is starting to agree.

Yum! Brands, the parent company of KFC, has officially released new policies that - if they stick - would prevent its restaurants from using throw-away paper packaging made from rainforest destruction. It's a huge shift that will affect almost 40,000 restaurants around the world.

This is a big deal for the 400 Sumatran tigers left in the Indonesian rainforest.

Only weeks ago Asia Pulp & Paper, a major rainforest destroyer, had announced its commitment to end its deforestation. Now one of the world's biggest fast food companies is taking another huge step forward to protect the world's forests, making two big breakthroughs for the forest in this year alone. With this momentum, imagine what is possible in the years ahead.

Yum! Brands also has a long way to go to phase out palm oil, which is linked to rainforest destruction. Turning a blind eye to the problems with palm oil - from pushing orangutans to extinction in Indonesia to trashing rainforests and people's rights in Africa - is not an option, especially when solutions to those problems are beginning to grow.

I'm a Master Naturalist and an outdoor enthusiast -- mostly kayaking, and I live on a Peninsula in the Chesapeake Bay. I'm the author of The Nature Fan, Nature Fan Activists, Green Earth Almanac, and Amanda's Geographic. Formerly, I ran the nationally syndicated column "National Green Activism" for The Examiner, and I was a key factor in the success of many campaigns. Make sure you don't miss a post, and subscribe by email! Thanks for reading.